Wasted Days and Wasted Nights
by Kaze and Kiba
Summary: All she wanted was a dry bed and a warm drink...and then they walked in.  A thank you fic for you super people who review my work "You know, Itachi, if you keep rolling your eyes like that they might stick that way and then your Sharingan will be useless"
1. Chapter 1

A/N-Hello there. This is just a fun little one-shot to say _Thank You_ to all you people who review my stories. This story has no tie-ins to any of my other ones—just so you know. It is not the full Akatsuki here—this is a Sakura/Itachi/Kisame story.

Before you ask later—Sequel? Well, maybe, but I kinda doubt it. One-shots don't get many reviews and I'm not putting up a sequel _unless_ it does, because I have other stories to work on. Hell yeah, I like reviews, who doesn't?

And to the _very few_ people who complain about my using a _few_ _Japanese_ words in my _Japanese_-based fanfictions—you'll just have to get over it—I've always done it and I always will. If it bothers you _that_ much go to the bottom of the chapters first and look up the _Things you probably already know _section. Some of you _probably_ already do this—good thinking.

I'll tell you something funny. The last person who complained (quite rudely too) about that to me actually had fics up of her own with Japanese words right in the summary lines…_wtf_—and _that's_ all I have to say about _that_.

Take your time and enjoy the story.

Thanks for editing goes to Sakura's Indecision and also to Rivenmist for a final proofread.

Arigato goziamasu,

K&K

**Wasted Days and Wasted Nights**

By

Kaze and Kiba

It had been one helluva long week and still it wasn't over yet.

"Damn."

The pink-haired kunoichi looked up at the sky that was starting to spit rain down on her. She still had two days left until she reached the border of Fire and, from the looks of those clouds, it promised to be one heck of a big, wet storm.

Lightning flashed, chasing her thoughts—she looked forward in the brilliant light and gave a happy sigh to see the small village on the horizon. Grass Country was a nice place to visit, she supposed, but she would much rather be in a nation full of trees. Sakura hot-footed it over the low ridge to the village and spied one of the local inns—it's warm, yellow light inviting her, along with the piano music and occasional cheer from some raucous men.

With a small grin, she entered the hearty establishment and went straight to the bar. She didn't fail to notice the piano had stopped playing and the cheers had gone silent as a good dozen men turned curiously to watch her pass.

"Do you have a room for the night?" she asked putting a few coins on the bar. "I'll take dinner and a bottle of sake, if you have it, too."

"Ere now, missy. Thare's a church down'ta otta side of ta village." The barkeep squinted at the pretty, little thing. "If yurs a smart one, yu'll get outta here and over thar on ta double. Or do's ya have yur man wit you outside?"

She pushed the money across the counter and added another 500 yen on top. "I think I'll take my chances. Thanks all the same."

The bartender's eyes lit up. "Yur call, sweetie. Don't be specting no chivalry's here, doh." He eagerly took the money and pocketed it. He looked behind her and yelled at the others, "What ya lookin at? Go back to yur games."

Sakura took the key he offered and the warning about the poor door lock. When he placed a large bowl in front of her, she was glad she had stayed. The stew was delicious and the sake was more than passing good. She sighed, happy she had decided to stay out of the rain.

"Hey there, miss."

A couple of somewhat clean-looking young men sidled up to either side of her.

"Did ya come here for a date? Cos me and my cousin, Jin here, we could show you a real good time."

"Was that _you_ arm wrestling when I came in?" Sakura asked innocently.

"Yeah, that was me," the chatty one spoke again, all puffed up now. "Would you like to see my muscles up close?"

A small smile graced her lips. "I think I'd like to try that arm wrestling sometime. I bet I'd be pretty good at it."

"Sure thing, pretty lady. I'll arm wrestle you. But if I win, you gotta go on a date with us."

"Ok," she agreed. "But if I win you have to buy me another bottle of sake…each. How's that sound—fair?"

"Sure."

Sakura waved over the bartender to ask, "Loser has to pay if the table breaks. Right, sir?"

"Yessum, little lady." The bartender assured her, his indulgent smile missing more than a few teeth. "Don' ya git too hurt, now."

Sakura nodded her thanks and stepped back from the bar and over to the table. She daintily took her seat among the catcalls, whistles and hollers from the inebriated men. She took the young man's hand and smiled generously at him. "No hard feelings, right?"

"I'll go easy on ya, darling," he assured her.

Famous last words.

The count of three and a go later, the man was lying on the floor amid the remains of the busted table. Sakura stood up to go to the bar to collect her winnings. She thought she might just take the sake to her room and enjoy it there.

The other men weren't having it, though. Amid the teasing and mockery, the humiliated man she beat claimed he let her win and others were now stepping forward to challenge her and demand she take them on.

What the hell? She looked at them, and then over to the barkeep. She had to admit, she _was_ having fun. "Why not? Say, bartender. Can these guys cover their losses if I hand them their asses?"

"Oh, yessum," he chuckled. "They's jus come back from furry'in, ya know. Sellin da furs they trapped all winter. They'sa loaded right now."

"And you don't mind having to purchase new tables?" she added with one eyebrow raised.

He laughed out loud, "Why no, miss! If'n they'sa wants ta buy new ones—these'ns a gitten kinda old."

"You hear that, boys? I'll take you on—one at a time. One bottle of sake per round. Loser pays for broken tables and, if you win, I'll pay double." She grinned impishly. "_Plus_ a kiss."

Well, they lined up and, in no time, twelve men had turned to more than twenty. Sakura did her best not to break all the tables, but by the time they were done, everyone was in roaring good spirits and, in the end, none of them minded losing to the 'Little Ox.'

Sakura sat at the bar enjoying her sake when they were all finished. She'd won so many times, the barkeep had to line up every bottle he had in the bar for her, but his pockets were fuller then they had been in years. In return, he offered everyone else a free beer in honor of the Little Ox. Sakura bought them all a round, too. Then she sat drinking her sake and listening to them sing and make fun of each other's loss to her.

A little down the rain-sopped road at a much quieter inn, sat two men—one nursing his tea, and the other restlessly drinking a bottle of sake straight from the rim.

"Come on, Itachi. Let's go see if there's a noisier crowd in this dumpy, little town. This place has way too many doilies for me," the man grumbled.

Itachi ignored him in favor of watching another man stumble in from the street. He was singing a raucous tune and he walked sloppily over to Kisame.

"Oh, yeah. You'll do just fine." The drunkard slapped the large Mist nin on the shoulder. "Put that Little Ox right in her place, you will."

"What's that, shorty?" Kisame glared at him, scaring the intoxicated man.

"I, ah, see you like sake, good sir," he said nervously. "Down the road at the Come On Inn, there's a pretty, little girlie who's offering to buy two bottles of sake and give a kiss to whoever can beat her in an arm wrestle. You look like you could take her, but I warn you, she's a strong one, that girlie. She put eight guys right _through_ the goddamn tables."

"Free sake, eh? Let's go, 'Tachi." He grinned. "I'm gonna get us free drinks _and_ a little sugar tonight!"

Kisame did not see the other man roll his eyes before he silently followed him out of the quiet inn. He should have known this place would be a little too quiet for Hoshigaki. If he didn't let him blow off a little steam now and then, he became altogether too violent on some missions when more delicacy was called for.

0o0o0

"Come on, honey-pie," the drunkard Sakura had lovingly named _The Germ_ coaxed. "Give us a little kiss." He put his hand on her seated rump and gave it a squeeze.

'He's got guts, this guy. That's the third time tonight,' Sakura thought and pulled back her finger to her thumb and let go, hitting _The Germ_ square in the forehead.

0o0o0

When the Akatsuki partners arrived at the inn, it was quite noisy indeed. Many men, and even a few women, were drinking happily and singing along with the jaunty piano man. No one seemed at all upset by the extraordinary amount of broken furniture, not even the man behind the bar cleaning glasses. To their surprise, a man came flying through the air, smashing into the wall next to them as they closed the swinging doors.

"Now _this_ is _my_ kind of place," the shark-nin grinned widely. "You know, Uchiha, if you keep doing that with your eyes, one day they'll stick up in your head like that and your Sharingan will be useless."

The two Akatsuki made their way further into the lively bar.

"Sake, please," Kisame ordered the barkeep. "And your best tea for my friend here."

"I kin brew ya up some nice tea, but t'aint n'more sake being sold here tonight unless ya's git it from dat un." The bartender pointed down the long line of sake bottles to the little pink-haired kunoichi sitting and drinking quietly and watching the crowd.

"All these belong to her?"

"Yep, bought n paid fer, jus like a lady should. If'n yu'll scuse me, gentlemen, I'll brew up dat tea now."

The black and red cloaked men turned to look at each other before turning back to the woman now turned toward the bar and smiling into her sake cup.

Itachi sighed and the shark grinned.

A confrontation was inevitable.

0o0o0

"Hey there, little lady," Kisame spoke from behind Sakura.

She turned slowly on her stool.

"No…fucking…way."

She turned back and poured herself another shot.

"That's _got_ to be a hallucination." Sakura stayed turned away from them. She was already pretty drunk and the more she drank, the more her more brash Inner personality came thunderously forth.

"I hear you are making bets here—open to all."

"Nope," she spoke confidently without looking at either of them. "I specifically said _no assholes_."

Kisame's face darkened at the insult. "Listen here, _missy_. I want some _sake_," he growled from over her shoulder.

"Then _take_ a bottle, asswipe, and _get_ _outta_ my face."

"One?" There had to be nearly thirty bottles lined up along the bar. "_You_ are gonna drink _all_ these?"

"Maybe. It's really none of your business," she said, looking over her shoulder, "is it, Fishface?"

"I only came here to wet my whistle, _Pinky_. You're the one hogging up all the sake."

"You can whistle?" she snorted. "With all those teeth?"

"You gonna arm wrestle me or do you just give up, _little girl_?"

"I don't need to arm wrestle you, _bakayaro_. I already won _all_ the sake in this joint."

"I bet I can out-drink you in ten minutes."

"Fat chance, _Fishface_." Her Shishou had shown her how to do more than just kick ass.

"I'll bet my cloak I can drink you into oblivion."

"Who would want that shitty, old thing?" Sakura scoffed. Then her eyes lit on something infinitely more interesting. "How about, if I win, I get that big tongue depressor you're dragging around?"

'This little snit has some kinda balls,' Kisame thought. "Alright. And when _I win_, I get _you_—one night, anything I want."

"_Eww_, I don't procreate with _fisshhh_," she sneered. "Fuck that. I'm not a _spawner_." Oh yes. Sakura had gone beyond simply drunk into that _much stupider than thou_ drunk territory. "What else?"

"Aw, what's a matter? You scared, little Cherry-chan? That must be it. I can't blame you for wetting your little panties at the thought of a big, strong man like me popping your cherry."

Sakura's temper flared right along with her face and her normal good sense flew right out the window. "Alright, you freakin' _tuna!_ When I _win_ I get your tongue depressor sword _and—"_ she pointed at Itachi "—your _girlfriend's_ ugly housecoat."

"Is this really necessary?" Itachi drawled, clearly nonplussed with the bluster being passed back and forth.

"Tell you what, Itachi," Kisame nudged his less-than-interested partner. "When I win, I'll let you have her for the first half of the night, then I'll take her the rest."

"Wait! That wasn't the deal. I don't want nothing to do with _him_." She stuck her finger right in front of Itachi's nose, not seeing his raised eyebrow. "He's _your _girlfriend!"

"Deal was I get you the whole night, whatever_ I_ want. Are you a chicken? All talk. You can't drink your way out of a paper bag, can you? You know, if I wanted, I could just overpower you now and take you with me. I think I'm being pretty damn generous."

She looked angrily between the stoic older brother of her MIA teammate and the pompous ass Mist nin challenging her and quickly made up her mind. "Fine. I'm not scared of you, but first, I'm going to the restroom." She got up to leave.

"I'll just stand outside the stall to make sure you don't leave, little missy."

Sakura put her hands on her hips. "No way you're coming with me, asshole."

"I don't trust you not to do some jutsu. Itachi, you go with her in the bathroom to make sure she doesn't cheat."

"Screw you, you jerk!" She poked him in the chest with one finger. "I'm not gonna cheat!"

"Itachi here is going to make sure of that. He'll behave like a gentleman. You made a bet and you're gonna honor it. Now get moving."

She stomped back to the bathrooms and into the ladies. If she didn't have to pee so bad, she would have waited till later. She was flabbergasted when the Uchiha actually followed her into the ladies room.

"You're not really coming in here with me, are you?"

"You shouldn't make bets you can't cover, kunoichi. If you want to run away I will let you go out the window and make excuses for you. Kisame will be comforted by the sake left behind."

"Damn Uchiha! You're just as arrogant as your stupid, little brother! I already paid for the lodging, that's _my_ sake, and I don't _make_ bets that I can't cover!"

"Very well." He stood waiting.

"Bastard!" She went into the first stall and, for a few minutes, there was silence.

"Um, Uchiha-san, can you cover your ears?"

"Excuse me?"

"…I can't go if I know you're listening."

She swore she heard him chuckle softly at her before he finally spoke. "I'll wait outside, but I'll monitor your chakra to make sure you don't cheat."

"Bastard!" she hissed.

When she left the bathroom, she stalked back to the bar and sat upon her stool before looking at the large, blue man. "You have to pay me for your half the sake we drink, Fishface."

"I'm gonna make you suck my-"

"Kisame-san," Itachi interrupted his filthy comment, "She did not perform any jutsu."

"Fine. I'll pay for what I drink, since I'm getting laid later for _free_."

"You disgusting pig!" Sakura scowled. "You are _so_ gonna lose."

Six bottles each later, the insults were flowing easily as the ninja and kunoichi sat across from each other at one of the few remaining tables. Itachi sat watching from the bar behind them. The girl was not only keeping up with the large man, she matched him insult for insult with language colorful enough to make a sailor blush.

"Ooh, what's the fishie man gonna do without his big sword. You know, I hear men carry large weapons to make up for a lack of…" She looked down and he growled. "The bigger the sword the smaller the…well, let's just say that's quite a _big _sword."

Itachi had to cover his mouth to keep his drink from spurting out—this little kunoichi either had a lot of guts or was completely suicidal. He cleared his throat and took another sip of tea.

"More sake, now" Kisame roared. "I'm gonna permanently bow your legs, little girl!"

She laughed out loud. "Oh, don't flatter yourself. I am a _doctor_, you idiot. I _know_ the limitations of your, ahem, package. I tell you what, I'm feeling generous. I'm so nice that I'll make sure and get you a room when you pass out so the winos don't molest you, Sharkie." Sakura wanted to anger the Mist nin. If she could get his blood pressure up, the alcohol would affect him that much faster.

She heard a deep voice bark quick laughter behind her but ignored it.

"The only one who's gonna pass out here, Rosebud, is you when I stick my big, fat-"

"Shut up and drink, Fishface. You're falling behind." Sakura picked up her ninth bottle and sipped from the rim.

"I thought only working girls dyed their hair that color. Are you sure you're a ninja, Cherry-chan?"

"Fuck you, you _blue_ bastard. I'm gonna use your sword to cut down trees all the way home." She turned to Itachi and said in her best little girl's voice, "You know, nii-tan, they don't allow _pets_ in this place without a leash. How did _you_ get away with it?"

"You don't look like much of a hooker to me, Pinky-chan, but you can hold your liquor pretty well for such a _little_ girl. Are you up past your bedtime? Won't Daddy be miffed?"

"If you drink as sadly as you insult, you won't last another hour against me, chum breath." She slid an eleventh bottle of sake at the man seated across from her. "I bet I could drink you under the table and still dance on said table, afterwards."

"You'll be dancing for me later tonight, sweet-cheeks. Dancing all over my-"

"Don't talk your penis up too much, Tuna-brain, I won't be able to keep the look of disappointment off my face later."

'Ho, baby,' she thought, looking at his face and trying not to giggle. 'That one got to him!'

"Why you little-"

"See? Don't you feel better telling the truth about your penis?"

"You—you _goddamn_-"

"I find, in my profession, that the more a man tells me about his package, the less there is when I finally see it," she said seriously. Oh, man was she drunk. She would probably pass out right here at this table if she didn't take this guy out soon.

She decided to go for the balls on the next one.

Kisame's fist slammed down on the table tilting the empty bottles and making them fall over. She ignored him.

"Don't act so surprised, Ita-chan." She had seen his eyebrow raise from the corner of her eye. "You _must_ know what I'm talking about since you two are _so_ _close_."

She had their complete attention now.

"I wondered at first, _why are there so many men in Akatsuki?_ And _why_ are there only teams of _two_?" She tapped her forehead pointedly. "Then I realized—well, I don't have to tell _you two_, now do I?"

"You know, I did meet the pretty, blond boy and his _master. _With that artsy type, it's so easy to tell—especially when one plays with _clay_ and the other with _dolls_. Sasori told me about his relationship with the Snake Sannin before I killed him. And, of course, everyone knows that old Oro likes the young boys. And then I thought, New Dawn…it didn't take me long to grasp after all that."

Kisame's mouth opened and closed in shock.

"Now you look just like my pet goldfish, _Fishface_. His name is Sushi. I think I'm gonna call you Sushi from now on."

She didn't know that blue skin could blush so well.

"You're falling behind again, Fishface." She pushed another bottle across the table and then refilled her cup.

On and on it went.

0o0o0

0o0o0

Sakura opened her eyes slowly and gazed sleepily at the unfamiliar wall, trying to remember exactly where she was and how she got there. She realized from the light coming in the window that it was already well past noon. Her head felt like it was stuffed with cotton and her temples were throbbing. She raised one hand to send some healing chakra to sooth the ache in her brain and sighed in relief as it began to take effect.

She froze and her eyes widened in shock when she realized the throbbing she'd heard was not merely in her head—there was a strong heart beating directly under her ear.

"Kami-sama!" she murmured anxiously.

The arm around her shoulder tightened and a deep voice chuckled.

"Hello, sleepyhead."

Sakura searched her memories for how on earth she could've ended up in a stranger's arms then she remembered the arm wrestling and the drinking and the challenge from the large, blue-

"Akatsuki." She turned her head to look at the hand on her shoulder and saw the gold ring with the blood-red stone on one long, pale, black-nailed finger.

'Oh, shit!' she thought and attempted to get up only to be pulled back down by strong arms as he twisted around so he was now on top of her.

"Leaving so soon?" His warm tenor gave her chills. "Is this the thanks I get for letting you use me as a pillow _all night_?"

"Uh…I, uh…"

"There's no rush. The room's been rented for another night." Untied, his long, silky hair fell in a dark curtain around them and deep gray eyes glimmered mischievously. He flashed a devastating smirk at her and if she had been standing, she knew her knees would not hold her weight.

"I, uh…Uchiha-san, I-"

"Why so formal, Sakura-chan? After all the pet names you gave me last night, I thought you'd come up with something more original."

"P-pet names?"

"Like nii-tan and Ita-chan and don't forget _girlfriend_."

"G-g-girlfriend? Gomen nasai, Uchiha-san. Sometimes when I drink too much, my mouth runs before my brain can catch up."

"Really? And does it make _bets _you can't cover?"

"Bets?" Now she remembered what had gone down between her and Hoshigaki. It was no wonder she'd forgotten—the two of them had sucked down more than twenty bottles of sake between them. It was a miracle she didn't have alcohol poisoning. She must have been unconsciously using chakra to clean her liver while she slept, like Tsunade had taught her.

He leaned down on top of her, the weight of his very male body pressed her down into the soft mattress as his mouth brushed her ear, sending shivers down her spine. "Shall I show you just how far away from a _girlfriend_ I really am, Sa-ku-ra?"

"The bet," Sakura said nervously, hoping to distract him. "Who won the bet?"

He pulled his head back slightly to look into her eyes. "You mean you don't know, Sakura-chan?"

Her face flushed with embarrassment because she couldn't answer truthfully.

"I must say, I was surprised that an innocent, little virgin like you had the guts to lay a wager on something so precious. Weren't you planning on giving that gift to someone special?"

"I never said I was a virgin!" she squeaked.

He chuckled and she could feel his laugh rumble through her own chest. "A woman who is unable to use the facilities within hearing distance of a man surely has not been intimate with one."

She closed her eyes in mortification. "Please, just kill me now."

"Where's the fun in that? I'm having more fun watching you turn so many interesting shades that compliment your hair."

Sakura's temper snapped a little at his teasing. "Did I really lose to that Fishface?"

"What's the matter?" His finger traced her jaw and then lingered at her pulse. "Are you worried? Don't you want to spend the afternoon in bed becoming a woman?" That finger continued down her collarbone and over the top of her breast then down her side, where his hand settled at her hip and his thumb massaged small circles into her bare skin where her shirt had pulled up from sleeping. "I rather think you would enjoy it."

She gaped at him and he could not keep the amusement from his face.

"Do you _want_ to know who won, Sakura-chan?"

Her mouth moved, but no sound came out. She cleared her throat worriedly and tried again.

"Please…tell me who won?" The question mark at the end of her sentence had him chuckling again. She swallowed dryly.

There was a loud knock at the door.

Itachi pressed his full weight back onto her and ground his hard body into her. Her heart was racing and her Inner self was salivating when he took her chin in his hand and raised it to make her look in his eyes.

"I could be your first, Sakura. You were saving it for my little brother, weren't you? I bet you're lonely with Sasuke so far away. I _could_ break you in for him."

Eyes impossibly wide, she shook her head at the man above her.

The knock, sounding more impatient this time, sounded at the door again.

"Come in," Itachi said.

The door opened and a large shadow blocked the light from the hall.

"Good afternoon, kiddies," a voice graveled from too much drink greeted them. "If you two are done playing honeymoon, do you mind telling me who won the bet so I can collect my winnings?

Sakura looked tensely from one Akatsuki nin to the other. Kisame didn't know who won either? That meant her fate lay in the hands of none other than Uchiha Itachi.

She was so screwed!

Literally, she lamented.

She looked up at Itachi imploringly.

"Please, Uchiha-san."

Itachi smiled a heart-stoppingly gorgeous smile at her and her stomach sank.

"Haruno-san won. Go get the sword."

"_Damn it all to hell_!"

Kisame left to retrieve sword.

Itachi rose and pulled her with him off the bed.

Her eyes were watering with relief when Itachi took her into his arms again.

"I hope you've learned a lesson here, little one." He wrapped his Akatsuki robe around her. "Don't be so quick to throw away something so precious." He smirked at her, fingering his well-crafted cloak. "Now I have a reason to come find you, Sakura-chan. Next time, I won't be honor-bound not to do as I please." He pulled the lapel of his cloak forward and her with it and kissed her lips softly. "I find you…interesting, kunoichi," he told her, laying his forehead against hers. "It will definitely be worth my time," he promised.

Kisame came in, talking to his sword, promising Samehada that he would get him back soon. "He won't bite you, kunoichi, but he's heavy. How you gonna carry him? Samehada's a little big for you."

She shakily stepped away from Itachi, who had finally released her. "That's ok. I can handle it, Hoshigaki-san." She simply lifted the sword as if it weighed nothing, putting it over her shoulder and walking, still a bit unsteady, out of the room, the inn, and back toward Fire Country while they watched in admiration.

"Damn, she's hot," Kisame moaned watching the little minx walk off with his favorite weapon and Itachi's cloak, now thrown over her shoulder. Samehada had been eager to go with the kunoichi, too. The sword was pissed that Kisame had pawned him off as a prize in a drinking game.

Itachi silently agreed. It had been awhile since something this interesting had come along.

0o0o0

0o0o0

0o0o0

Things you probably already know:

Bakayaro-jackass

Kami-sama-Oh Lord-God

Nii-tan-big brother

0o0o0

Hehe.

Reviews=Love=Author's Inspiration


	2. Chapter 2 Hunted

Thank You, Sakura's Unicorn for editing this monster. You're a peach!

Wasted Days and Wasted Nights—(Sequel, part 1)

by

Kaze and Kiba

_Wasted days and wasted nights_

_I have left for you behind_

_For you don't belong to me,_

_You heart belongs,_

_to someone else.—Freddie Fender-1959_

0o0o0

0o0o0

Chapter Two-Hunted

0o0o0

0o0o0

Sakura was ten miles away before hit her.

Had she really just bested two S-class ninja? Had they _actually_ honored a bet? She thought that criminals were all the same—rogues, thieves, liars and cheats. She sat down hard on a large rock on the side of the path and set Samehada against her knee.

"I can't believe it!"

She heard a whine and quickly stood up. The sword slipped off her knee and now leaned on the rock. She looked all around her before looking at the huge sword closely.

"Did you just…speak?"

The sword made a forlorn sighing sound.

"You did," she said slowly, turning her head at an angle. "You have your own consciousness then?"

The bandaged sword's skull-capped handle wriggled and her eyebrows rose in wonder.

"So, when Kisame told me you wouldn't bite, it was because you _agreed_ not to—not because he gave you some kind of order, right?"

The sword growled softly.

"Then, you're probably kinda upset that he would use you for a bet, huh?"

The sword growled louder.

"You poor thing," she cooed to the obviously upset, sentient sword. "I bet you really loved him, too, didn't you? Well, I understand about being brushed aside." Her soft smile held a sardonic curl. "You should always treat your friends and your weapons well because you never know when they'll save your ass, right?"

The sword handle wiggled and Sakura cautiously reached out a hand and touched it only to have it vibrate happily and extend itself further to twist around her wrist—almost lovingly.

She giggled. "Why, Samehada, you're pretty cool, aren't you? Would you like to visit my home with me?"

The sword handle vibrated soothingly around her wrist and she smiled and picked it up, setting it back over her shoulder as she set off down the path toward home.

"I bet Hoshigaki's sorry that he did something so dumb now. He should have just bought his own booze to begin with and left me alone—big bully."

The sword gurgled in agreement and Sakura giggled.

0o0o0

Hours later, Sakura's trek home was interrupted about twenty miles inside the border of Fire Country. An impossibly tall, dark-skinned man who smelled like he hadn't bathed in a month blocked her path. She couldn't tell if his skin was truly dark or just filthy.

"Yo, sweetness. Whatcha got there?" He pointed at the sword before smoothing his hand over his grubby, bald pate. "Looks heavy."

Sakura paused, wrinkling her nose while she tried to get a read on the man who had so boldly stepped in front of her. He didn't look much like a ninja—tall, yet thin as a pole, no muscle tone on his threadlike limbs. Most ninja wouldn't be stupid enough to stand so close to a stranger, either. But looks hardly counted in her world. She had used her child-like looks to deceive enemies into thinking her weak many a time.

"Konichiwa, ojiisan. If you'll excuse me." She took a small step back. "I'm afraid I have no time to talk."

"We ain't looking for _chit-chat_, sweetness." The man loosened his belt.

Suddenly, Sakura felt the chakra pulse of four more men as they walked out from the wooded area around them. Maybe she couldn't sense if the man in front of her was a ninja, but _they_ definitely were. Finally, the skinny guy dropped his chakra screen. The belt he pulled from his waist now looked more like a whip than anything. Sakura took another step back.

"Listen up, buddy, 'cause I'm only going to say this _once_." Sakura's voice took on the stern, unforgiving authority she'd learned from her master. "You don't want to mess with me."

"Oh, we wanna mess with you, sweetness." He grinned and the other men around her chuckled cruelly. "_Mess_ with you, _screw_ with you.' He paused grinning evilly. "_Fuck_ with you."

'Bastards! They are so gonna be sorry for this,' she thought.

"Samehada, are you feeling _hungry_?" Sakura asked, taking the sword from her shoulder, drawing it out and waving it around—she used it to clear a bit more space between her, the creep, and his friends.

Sakura fed a burst of chakra into the sword and it hummed with life. For the first time since the stranger showed up, he and the rest of his gang started to look unsure of their perverted venture.

"I'll give you one last chance to run away, assholes. Then you're gonna die."

The men guffawed at the little girl's bravado. "Tough words aren't gonna save you today, sweetness."

"I warned you."

Sakura took a firm grip on the sword and made the first hit. One swipe and Samehada had drained the man of his chakra. Furthermore, the strength Sakura used in the swing knocked the man a good forty feet across the forest. In fact, the only thing that stopped him was his back hitting a tree, breaking the trunk in half.

Either insane or simply foolish, the other four men didn't back down. They all leapt in to tackle her at once but Sakura was able to kick the second man away from her while Samehada sucked the chakra from a third. She twisted and blocked a forth's kunai as it sailed through the air. With a spin she hit the other two with the sword and she swore she could hear Samehada roar with satisfaction. When she paused for a moment she realized that the fight was over. All around her, men lay unconscious, broken, and bleeding, or dead.

It had taken less than a minute.

"Amazing," she said, petting with one hand the eager sword that seemed to have grown after having eaten so much chakra. "Samehada, my friend, you _are_ unmatched."

Sated and happy with his new partner whose chakra tasted as sweet and pure as honey, the sword hummed and its pommel twisted around her wrist. Sakura left the men where they lay. They could save themselves or die there, she didn't care. Either way, they would think twice before confronting a woman alone ever again.

0o0o0

Four ANBU met Sakura a mile outside Konoha.

"Haruno-san!" A spike-haired shinobi stopped a few yards in front of her. "Are you alone?"

"Yes. Why?" She suddenly felt the presence of the other ANBU as Samehada growled softly.

"Sensor nins on Konoha's wall felt the presence of something powerful and perhaps dangerous coming toward the village." He looked pointedly at the sword.

"Of course." She nodded. "I picked up something new on my way home. I should have sent a summons with a warning. Gomen."

'Good thing I stuffed that Akatsuki robe in my pack,' she thought, 'or I might have already been under arrest.'

"We will escort you to the Hokage. You must give up your weapon to us, Haruno-san."

The sword's aura began to darken and swell.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, ANBU-san. The sword is very…particular about who carries it." Sakura patted the blade and soothed it, calmly telling it to back down. "You have my word as a Konoha shinobi that I will do no harm."

"You are aware that if you are perceived as a threat, your life is forfeit."

"Of course, ANBU-san. Lead the way."

"Sakura-san." The gate guard smiled when he saw her. "Welcome ba—" He gaped like a fish when he saw the huge sword she carried. Others followed suit.

Sakura was marched straight to Tsunade's office. Unfortunately, the Elders were there having a meeting with her Shishou. They were more than interested in the prize Sakura brought home.

Sakura told them the story of the bar, the arm wrestling, how she'd charmed the bartender, beaten the men, and won so much sake. She heard a few quiet snickers from the unseen ANBU watching the debriefing.

"Then, I guess, word must have spread through the town because _they_ showed up."

"The Akatsuki?" asked Homura, the elder, male Council member."

"Hai," she confirmed. "Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame."

"And they _didn't_ attack you?" Koharu, the female elder, added suspiciously.

"No." Sakura did her damnedest not to squirm and fidget, but it was nearly impossible. Her story sounded outrageous to her own ears. If she showed any sign of weakness, these Council members would jump on it and have her thrown in jail. "Uchiha Itachi didn't even speak to me. It was Hoshigaki. He wanted to challenge me."

"_And_?"

"And I'd already had too much to drink, so I refused."

"Traitorous! Why didn't _you_ attack them?" Homura hissed. "They are both wanted criminals!"

"I had no back up and was in no condition to fight."

"What happened then, Sakura?" Tsunade urged her to continue.

"Hoshigaki insisted on a challenge. He wouldn't back down. He issued a drinking challenge. At first, I refused, but…"

"What?"

She scratched the back of her head nervously. "He, ah, insulted me."

"Sakura!"

More snickers came from the background, pissing her off more than a little and unconsciously causing her to snap.

"Shishou! I was tired, the weather was crummy and I just stopped in the bar to have a little drink and wait out the rain. How was I supposed to know the Akatsuki would show up?"

Sakura's face glowed when she realized how freely she'd spoken in front of the Council. Bowing low, she said, "Please forgive me, Hokage-sama. I was stupid and accepted a ridiculous bet!"

"A bet, eh? Now _that_ I can understand." Tsunade's eyes took on a wicked glow. "What were the stakes?"

She shifted nervously. "Hoshigaki wanted to bet his Akatsuki cloak, but I said no. Then I saw Samehada here and I thought, ah, well, it _is_ an amazing sword."

The sword hummed appreciatively.

"Um, yeah, and I sort of asked for Uchiha's cloak, too." She pulled the pack from her back and unzipped it, pulling out Itachi's robe—her faced burned when she realized that she recognized Itachi's scent on it from sleeping with him all night.

"This is a farce!" Homura roared. "It's obvious she's in league with the Akatsuki. I want her arrested immediately and put under Ibiki's interrogation!"

'Ibiki's is a torture specialist!' Sakura paled. "It's true! I swear it!"

"That story is pure cock and bull!" Koharu railed in her thin, high voice. "She's as much as declared her loyalty to them by her presence here with that, that _thing_. And she can't _prove_ this is Uchiha Itachi's cloak. It _must_ be hers! She's just trying to cover her tracks. She's a spy!"

"Calm down," Tsunade ordered. "We will get to the bottom of this. Sakura, what exactly did you put up for the bet?"

Sakura turned beet-red and sputtered and choked on her next words. They came out unintelligible.

"What was that?"

"I said I was drunk, Shishou." Her eyes begged her master not to make her say it out loud. "Drunk and stupid, but not a traitor!"

"Tell me what your stake in the bet was."

Sakura mumbled.

"Speak up, child!" Koharu snapped.

"I _said_, the sake I had won," she covered her flaming face with one hand, "…and for one night, and _only_ one night…me."

The silence was deafening.

'Good thing I left out the part about waking up in bed with Uchiha Itachi,' she thought acidly.

Tsunade opened her drawer and pulled out a bottle. Normally, she wouldn't imbibe around the Elders, but the day was already fucked, so why not?

She took her time pouring two cups and drinking them both before she spoke.

"Damn it, Sakura. It looks like I might have to put you on probation. Give the robe to the ANBU so they can take it to be examined." She gave the Council elders a dirty look.

"Hai, Shishou." Sakura handed the robe to the ANBU.

"Hm," Tsunade pondered a bit as she poured another cup. "The sword technically belongs to Mist. Would you be adverse to taking a team of jounin and returning it to the Mizukage as a sign of goodwill between Konoha and Kirigakure, Sakura?"

"Uh, no, if it's ok with Samehada. As he has his own will, I think we should ask him, too."

"I agree. May I hold him?" Tsunade held out her hand.

Sakura held out the sword. "He likes chakra."

Tsunade sent out a large pulse of chakra and the sword groaned in pleasure as she took him in hand.

"Samehada," she greeted. "It is common knowledge that the best swordsmen in the world are trained in Mist. Would you be averse to going there to possibly find a new and better master?"

The sword whined a little, but relaxed. Sakura nodded. "It seems he's ok with it, Hokage-sama."

The Elders broke in. "Anyone you send with her to return that sword is in mortal danger. You can't sacrifice our best nin to the Akatsuki that way."

"I can go alone." Sakura said acerbically.

"No, it's too dangerous, Sakura."

"I still say you should lock her up indefinitely and torture her until she gives up everything she knows about Akatsuki!"

"She is my apprentice! If you lock her up, I will lock _you_ up, too!"

"Hokage-sama," Sakura warned, not wanting to start a civil war. She knew how much her Shishou disliked these meddling old farts.

"Fine." Tsunade growled, handing the sword back. "You can return the sword alone. But first I will contact Mist and have them meet you at Fire's border. I won't have you wandering through those oceans alone."

"Thank you, Shishou."

0o0o0

0o0o0

Sakura sighed heavily. Over her shoulder, Samehada gurgled with pleasure.

"You would love this weather, wouldn't you?"

Something resembling a long tongue slipped out the edge of the bandages that encased the sword and licked at the cold, pouring rain around them. It had been raining steadily since she left Konoha. At first, she didn't mind the soft, warm, spring rain, but as she moved closer to the borders of Fire and the oceans surrounding Mist, the air turned chill.

After two days of rain, there wasn't a dry spot left on her body. She shivered and looked at the darkening sky. It would be dark early with the rainclouds. She had maybe another hour until full darkness. She wasn't very far from where she was scheduled to meet with the representatives from Mist. She wasn't relishing the thought of spending another cold, wet night in the pouring rain, but she wasn't supposed to meet them until tomorrow.

Then she spotted the ryokan.

Surrounded by lush, sculpted landscaping, was a large onsen hotel. Its yellow light glowed warmly, inviting her to come in out of the rain.

'Why not,' she thought. If she had to, she could carry the water-loving sword right into the hot, healing waters with her to keep an eye on it. There probably wouldn't be too many people out and about this late in the evening.

A bitter, cold shiver decided for her. If she was going to be wet, she at least wanted to warm up, too. She opened the sliding door marked _Manager_ and slipped off her sandals.

"Welcome!" the older woman greeted Sakura. "How nice to see a traveler on such a stormy night. Would you like a room?"

"Yes, please. Just for one night."

"Of course, ojousan." She swept her arm back toward the front desk. "Come right this way and I'll check you in."

As Sakura signed the registry and got out her wallet, the innkeeper looked curiously at the wrapped sword she had leaned against the wall.

"That's quite a large parcel you have there, ojousan. It looks heavy."

"It's not bad, really," Sakura assured her. "It's a gift for some friends."

The innkeeper was still looking curiously at the large sword.

"I'd like to go to my room now." Sakura gently reminded her. "It's getting late."

"You're right, ojousan. Let me show you to your room and then I'll close up for the night.

Sakura followed the manager down the long halls, half-listening to her extol the virtues of her lovely inn—the semi-private hot springs, luxury rooms, even masseuse services if she desired. Sakura perked up at her next suggestion.

"Would you like a snack?"

'Food would be great,' she thought, her stomach rumbling.

"If it's no trouble, that would be wonderful," she smiled. "Thanks."

"No trouble at all. I have some umeboshi onigiri made. If you give me a minute, I'll bring it up and then you can have dinner before your soak."

"Sounds good. If you don't mind me asking—" She looked around at the open doors of the many empty rooms they passed. "Why is this inn so deserted?"

"Well, it's a popular place, normally, but when the rainy season comes, no one around here is in the mood for a rainy soak and travelers usually head closer to northern Fire Country for vacation. There's a public indoor bath further up the road, if you prefer."

A deserted place suited her needs well. "I'll stay. Thank you very much."

"You enjoy your room and the baths now. I'll be right back with your food." She bowed and slid the door closed.

0o0o0

Sakura pulled back the curtains in her room to see that it was still raining steadily. The hot spring was directly out the back shoji door. She could see the large pool steaming faintly. The manager knocked and gave her a tray, bidding her good night. She ate, went into the bathroom and cleaned up, washing her hair and body with the soothing, honey-scented soaps and shampoos there. Then, she wrapped herself in a soft, white towel provided by the inn and, picking up the sword, went out the door to the spring.

Her room had been a generous size, but the spring outside was positively luxurious compared to many she'd seen. Her large, private pool was shielded from the rooms around hers by tall bamboo and other plantings. The pools had been cordoned off on two sides by tall cedar walls and nature provided the third. There was a small, stone-paved path used by the owner to maintain the pools without having to enter guest's rooms. Sakura sat Samehada on the pools edge and took off her towel, folding it and setting it in the sheltered ledge before stepping gingerly into the steamy water with a satisfied sigh.

As she waded in and sat back soaking in the warmth of the spring, she noticed the rain had slacked to a gentle sprinkle. Soon, it stopped altogether and the clouds parted to reveal a hint of moonlight which brightened the night sky.

Sakura glanced at the floating sake tray in the middle of the pool. The innkeeper had provided her with a nightcap, but she was suddenly so relaxed that she thought she wouldn't need any help getting to sleep.

Sakura sighed, closed her eyes and sank down until her chin touched the water. The hot water lapped soothingly at her body, sending waves of delicious sensations through her from head to toe.

0o0o0

0o0o0

0o0o0

"When are we going to stop for the night, Sasuke-kun?" Karen whined. "It's cold and wet and my hair is frizzing like crazy with all this damn humidity." The redhead sidled up to the dark, stoic ninja and walked two fingers suggestively up his arm, petitioning, "I think there are some bathhouses ahead. If we stop, I can wash your back and make dinner and a give you a nice, _warm_ bed."

"You just want to be _in_ his bed, tramp." Suigetsu taunted. "What are you complaining about anyway? This weather is great. We can travel unseen and—"

"You just like all the water, Fishboy!" Karen hissed. "If it wasn't raining, you'd be howling about eating and resting, too."

"Well, then you should be grateful that I'm not, shouldn't you?" Suigetsu grinned sharply. "You're always bitching at _me_ not to take breaks."

"I hate you, _stupid_ _Suigetsu_."

"Shut up," Sasuke growled in irritation as he stalked ahead.

0o0o0

0o0o0

Sakura roused herself from her semi-conscious state with a start. She thought she felt something just on the edge of her consciousness. She reached out, searching with her senses, but there was nothing there.

"Paranoid," she murmured, impulsively reaching out and pouring herself a cup of sake. She picked up the tiny china cup to take a sip and brought it all the way to her lips before she changed her mind and carefully put it back. If she was already half asleep, she didn't really need to imbibe any of the pungent crutch favored by her shishou. She sat up and stretched her limbs, thinking of calling it an early night. Then she saw the tray gently lift and bob on the surface of the water.

'Oh, _hell_, no,' she thought anxiously. She snatched the towel off the shelf next to her, stood up and swiftly wrapped it tightly around herself.

"Why can't you ever just leave me alone, Fishface?"

"Tsk." A disappointed voice spoke from the shadow of the pool. "What gave me away?"

"There are no _waves_ in a hot spring, Tunahead!"

"You know, my mother gave me a name, _Pinkie_. It's Kisame." The Mist nin's grinning maw rose from the depths of the water.

Sakura stared at him incredulously. "_You_ have a mother?" she scoffed. "I thought you were spawned in the depths of hell."

"Such sincere flattery from a sweet, little hellion," Kisame muttered. "Come now, _little_ _girl_. You have to give me a chance to win back my sword. How about a rematch?" He grinned and plucked her sake cup off the tray, looking ridiculous holding the tiny china cup in his big, blue paw. "I'll buy, Cherry-chan."

Sakura backed up toward the edge of the pool and stepped up to the edge. "I was freaking crazy to drink with you in the first place, you big, blue jerk! I would have to be completely insane to try that again."

"Have it your way, Pinkie." Kisame threw the tiny cup and picked up the sake bottle, taking a swig. "But if you don't answer my challenge, I'm taking Samehada back, regardless."

"Omai—" Sakura hissed and reached back to grab the sword she'd left sitting there, clasping her hand around a strong, lean…_wrist_? She swiftly turned and ran, nose first, smack into the hard, naked chest of a man. His free arm snaked around her waist, holding her close.

"Oh, _shit_!" She let go of the wrist she held and her chin was caught in a firm grip.

"Sakura-chan," Itachi's deep, sultry voice gave her chills as he shook his head in disappointment. "Such vulgar language from such _pretty_ lips." Itachi's red eyes spun and she was immediately lost in his genjutsu. Her knees gave way and Itachi caught her and laid her out along the pool's edge.

"What are you gonna do with her? Take her along?"

"That is none of your business. Just retrieve your sword. I'll catch up later."

"She sure is a pistol." Kisame stepped atop the water. "If she wasn't such an innocent, little do-gooder, I'd say we keep her. Might make life more interesting," Kisame snickered and leapt over the pair to collect his sword.

Itachi sat next to the pretty girl still struggling inside his genjutsu. "It might at that," he agreed with a smirk.

Ever since they'd let her go from Grass, Itachi's mind had lingered on the kunoichi. It was unusual how one woman could capture his attention so completely.

Normally, he sealed his emotions off, kept his distance from everyone, and set his mind only on his mission. He'd known about the girl being on his otouto's genin team and he'd seen her in Suna. He'd even heard about her battle with Sasori of the Red Sands from other members of the organization—but it wasn't until she'd stood fearlessly up to them in that bar that he'd taken an interest in the girl. Her sassy spirit and appealing smile had charmed him in a way he couldn't explain. She piqued his curiosity. No one ever stood up to him in such a way.

He found himself making up reasons to drop in on her. He'd detoured from his last mission to Wave, stopping in a small bar frequented by lower-level personnel from the Hokage Tower, who, unknown to the Hokage, gossiped about the hidden village—he needed to know if she'd been punished or praised for the sword's retrieval. He'd even gone so far as to slip into Konoha's training grounds to watch her try her hand at handling his partner's sword to see how it melded with her own fighting style. It was surprising the things he'd done since crossing paths with the kunoichi—even agreeing to assist Kisame in his quest to retrieve his lost sword.

As he watched her wake up in the pool and stretch her lovely limbs gracefully before Kisame revealed himself, he contemplated what he really wanted from her and how to get it.

Itachi knew the girl would not be foolish enough to accept another wager with the Mist-nin. Perhaps if he told her that he wanted his robe back—it still contained a special trinket he'd had sewn into the hem. The wristlet had been given to him by his father, Fugaku, on the day of his oshichiya. The small bracelet with rare, crimson firestones encrusted in it, was one of the few things Itachi kept from his childhood. His father proudly told him that the bracelet had been handed down from father to eldest son as far back as their family records had shown and, one day, Fugaku hoped to live to see Itachi hand it to his own son.

His mouth twitched into a smile as he remembered the feel of her soft, full lips against his and an undeniable urge to feel them again burned within him. His eyes hungrily ran over her pale throat to pause at the site of her cleavage cinched tightly in her towel.

Even though Itachi had stolen one dream from his father when he'd slit his throat, he still felt the responsibility of family tradition and could not leave his oshichiya gift behind when he left the village. His fingertips trailed over her cheekbones as he wondered if he might, one day, have need of his inheritance.

0o0o0

The dreamlike quality of the space around her confused Sakura—she didn't remember leaving the hot spring—yet here she was in her candlelit room, looking at the large bed which was sprinkled with…what _was_ that? She walked over and smoothed her fingers over the white bedspread.

"Petals?"

White and red rose petals, to be precise. Why in the world would the owner put rose petals on her bed? She shook her head in confusion. And why was there a candle? Why not just turn on the light? She flipped the switch, but nothing happened.

Maybe the power was out. That was why the owner had lit—

The candle sputtered out!

She turned to see, but the room had fallen into darkness.

'What the hell is going on?' she thought, watching the curtain flutter gently in the faint light from the window.

'Of course,' she realized, breathing easier. 'I forgot the window was left open. The wind must have gusted enough to put out the candle. No matter,' she thought, exhausted. 'Better to get some sleep and ask questions in the morning.'

She found her way back to the bed, took off her robe and slid under the rose-scented covers with a grateful sigh.

It only took her a second to realize there was already someone else in bed with her, but it was half a second too late.

She hadn't even pulled up the covers when she found herself tangled with another warm body. She started to scream and a hand covered her mouth. Her eyes flew open to see the glint of red above her.

_Itachi!_

'It's a trick!' her Inner hissed. 'Genjutsu!'

"Kai!" She was finally able to disturb her system's chakra just enough to disperse the genjutsu. Sakura discovered that she lay not in her bed, but on her back next to the pool. The cool air on her bare shoulders and arms gave her goose bumps.

It seemed darker than before. She shook her head and refocused her vision—above her, naked from the waist up, bent a man so beautiful and deadly that she forgot to breathe. The moonlight shone like the halo of a dark angel around his head as Uchiha Itachi leaned over her—his long, silky hair curtained around them, tickling her naked collarbone, making her squirm.

Was this vision real or was she still trapped in the genjutsu, she wondered in awe.

No, a drop of sweat ran from her chin, down her neck, to pool at the base of her throat. She could feel the pulse of heat coming from his body. It made her flush all over. She felt the faint puff of breath from his mouth directly above her forehead and his thumb rubbing her side through her towel in a disturbingly pleasing caress.

This was no genjutsu.

Sakura pressed both hands against Itachi's bare, muscled chest. She gasped at the contact of his warm skin, feeling his strong heartbeat beneath her fingers.

"Wh-what are you doing?"

The velvet of his silky voice was electrifying. "I believe my job is to distract you, kunoichi, while my partner steals his sword back." His eyes shone with mischief and her jaw dropped in alarm.

Sakura's fingers flinched over the hard, smooth, pale skin. Itachi's knees slid between her legs and he pressed his body closer to hers. When she felt his thighs press against her towel-clad ones and the noticeable evidence of his arousal there, she nearly swallowed her own tongue from shock.

"How am I doing, kunoichi?" he purred near her ear, making her shiver.

Behind them, a too-familiar voice sneered, "Itachi!"

Itachi smiled wickedly at Sakura and kissed the tip of her nose.

"Summen, otouto. I'm afraid I can't play with you today." One arm slipped around Sakura's waist and arched her closer to him before his hand slid down over her bottom, grinding her into himself and making her yelp in surprise—he never even glanced at his glaring, younger brother standing on the other side of the pool.

"As you can see, I'm on a seduction mission."

Sakura's eyes grew as large as saucers and she screamed one word, just before she and Itachi disappeared.

"Sasuke-kun!"

0o0o0

0o0o0

0o0o0

Omai-means 'you' but not in a nice way, more like-you asshole.

Oshichiya-baby naming ceremony—done on the seventh day after the child's birth.

A/N-Hmm, well, this is the first installment of the sequel you requested. I really didn't think that many people would want a sequel to WD&WD one-shot which is now the first chapter. Thanks for your patience. I was very pleasantly surprised by all the nice reviews, so I've done my best. What do you think?


	3. Chapter 3 Chances Are

DNON~

Ok, this started as humorous one shot. Many people asked for more so it turned into a weird little story that's probably more drama than humor. It went from one chapter to four…well, maybe five chapters, so whatever happens, expect the unexpected. I tried to get this out faster but I keep changing my mind on what to do and then I got into my other stories and…yeah, you know. I'm kinda busy.

And one more thing—way over 7k here—_long_ chapter—blood, sweat & tears—so _please_ review—your thoughts could still effect the rest of the story as it's undecided.

And let me remind you that although there are some rather, _ahem_, warm scenes, this story is _not_ classified under romance, so I wouldn't expect an ending like _and they lived happily ever after_.

I personally feel like Itachi is pretty darn ooc in this story but—_eh_? You'd rather have _hot_, _naughty_ Itachi, _ne_?

I thought so.

K&K

0o0o0

Wasted Days and Wasted Nights.

Chapter 3—Chances Are

0o0o0

_Don't you remember the day_

_That you went away—and left me?_

_I was lonely, prayed for you only, my love. _

_~Freddie Fender~1959_

0o0o0

0o0o0

0o0o0

"What the _fuck_?"

Sasuke never thought to find his brother at a place like this…doing _that_. When he neared the onsen, he recognized his brother's chakra immediately and came straight for him, only to find _this_.

'Impossible. Could this be genjutsu?_'_

His cruel, emotionless brother was bent over a woman's body on the edge of the pool in the dark of night. Itachi's long hair covered their faces, but he could clearly see them.

Itachi lay half-naked over the woman in the towel. Their skin glowed as steam rose off their bodies, curling and twisting around them before dissipating into the chill air. Her hands lay flat against his chest. Itachi whispered something to her and drew her body up to his. Sasuke tensed when she cried out—the woman sounded frightened—maybe things weren't exactly as they seemed.

Sasuke was certain this was his brother, but Itachi's actions seemed foreign to his nature. He called out to him in challenge.

"Itachi!"

Sasuke watched wide-eyed as he saw the shadow of his brother's face through the curtain of his hair. Itachi leaned down and kissed the woman. She gasped.

"Gomen, otouto. I'm afraid I can't play with you today. As you can see, I'm on a seduction mission."

The woman screamed and they both vanished.

"_Sasuke-kun!"_

Unexpectedly, Sasuke experienced the first moment of panic that he'd felt in years.

That voice!

That girl under Itachi—he _knew_ her!

"Sakura?" he asked the empty space where they had been.

Her cry echoed through his memory. He heard that same voice begging, pleading with him not to leave her alone, to take her with him, pledging to do anything to help him get his revenge.

'Sakura?_'_

What the hell was _Sakura_ doing with Itachi!

He pulled Kusanagi from its scabbard and swung. A half dozen bamboo trees split in two—the rustle and crack of falling branches jarred his conflicting thoughts.

Doubt rang through him. 'Is Sakura still trying to assist me in my quest for vengeance by attempting to kill Itachi? Is he playing some kind of game, using her as bait? Or is she planning to betray _me_?'

"_Damn it!" _

He wasn't about to wait to find out.

"Karin," he growled at the girl hiding in the woods.

"Yes, Sasuke-kun," she simpered, running to him and clinging to his arm. She cringed at the way his aura burned with jealousy.

He brushed her off. "Where are they?"

"Who?" Karin pretended he hadn't just said _they_. "Itachi? Oh, yes. I'll find _him_ for you, Sasuke-kun!" Her hands slipped through the hand signs for her Kagura Shingan. She gasped at what she found—her cheeks flushed red.

"Where are they?"

"The woods—that way," she said, pointing. "About eight miles. Ah, Sasuke-kun? He took that girl with him and they're—"

Sasuke was already on his way.

0o0o0

"What do the hell you think you're doing?" Sakura hissed hysterically, struggling to free herself. Itachi held her down on the soft grass by lying atop her, his hands gripping her forearms over her head—he was somehow blocking her chakra through the pulse points there. "Get _off_ me!"

"Did you miss me, Sakura?" His low tenor gave her shivers and his lips tickled her skin as he grazed her neck with his teeth. "I can feel your pulse racing, set to burst." The tip of his tongue caressed the edge of her ear and he chuckled at her sharp intake of breath. "I know I excite you." He ground his hips into hers as his hard body settled suggestively atop hers. "Have you been thinking of my offer to make you a woman?"

"S-stop it!"

He ignored her demand. "_I've_ thought about it, Sakura. In fact, the idea hasn't left my mind since I let you escape my bed."

She groaned in frustration and felt him smirk against the side of her neck.

"Why won't you leave me alone?" She twisted, trying to escape, but that only made her more aware of the sparse amount of fabric separating their bare skin and how loose it was becoming.

"You had the sword."

"_Had! _Past tense!"

"Did you bring my cloak with you, too, Sakura?" He spoke directly into her ear and the puff of air sent shivers down her spine.

"The cloak?" she gasped. "You want the cloak?"

'That's what this was about,' she thought, relieved—although, both she and Ibiki had checked and found nothing in the robe's pockets. Ibiki returned it to her before she left Konoha, chuckling indulgently about her escapade, telling her it would make a great housecoat—sure to frighten off even the most persistent door-to-door salesmen.

"You can have it back," she told him, panting, squirming, trying to avoid looking in his deep red eyes—eyes that could render her helpless in between the space of a moment. "It's in my apartment. I'll go get it for you right now."

"What's your hurry?" Itachi held her down firmly when she tried to get up. "I _warned_ you that when next we met, I would not be honor-bound by some silly bet and could do to you…as…I…please." He punctuated each word with a kiss down her neck to her collarbone, dangerously close to her cleavage.

"But—"

"Besides, it amuses me to see my little brother so upset when you respond to me." His head dipped and Itachi sucked at her pulse point until she moaned involuntarily from the sinful sensations running through her body—whatever he had done to her wrists made the strength in her arms melt and her chakra system go haywire.

Itachi took both her hands in his one hand, freeing his other to roam freely. He paused to tug her towel loose before smoothly grazing his hand along the side of her breast. His fingers slipped into the gap where the cloth had fallen open near her thigh. She closed her eyes and gasped at the electric contact of his palm against her naked hip.

'How is it,' she thought wildly, trying to make sense of this senseless situation, 'that one brother can be so dangerous and fiery, and the other so protective and cold—yet they're both so beautiful and deadly?'

"You are so responsive to me, Sakura," he hummed. "I enjoy that, but Sasuke didn't seem too happy." He chuckled when a small frown marred her features at the name of his otouto. "The jealous look on his face makes me wonder if Sasuke finds you as interesting as I do."

'Sasuke-kun? _Jealous_?' Sakura's Inner voice shouted. 'You did _not_ just say that!'

Suddenly, Itachi wasn't quite so daunting. He didn't know Sasuke as well as he thought. He had no idea of what they'd been through—how she could never give Sasuke what he'd needed no matter how hard she'd tried—of the miles of pain between them. She realized then, he was just using her to get on Sasuke's nerves—the idiot.

A bitter bark of laughter broke from her.

"The only _feeling_ Sasuke has for me is contempt, you bastard!" She grit her teeth, suppressing a moan as his hand did something that felt so amazing yet so wrong. "I won't take part in your games. Using me to hurt him won't work. He doesn't care about—_eek_!"

"I don't play games, Sakura." Itachi promised, pinching her tender skin. Under the towel, his hand smoothed up from her waist to ghost across her breast and Sakura's body betrayed her as she closed her eyes and nearly arched into his touch—even as her mind reeled, screaming _danger_ at her. "My hunger for you has nothing to do with him."

"No," she protested faintly. He's _lying_! It couldn't be true. She closed her eyes in concentration, trying to disturb her chakra system because, surely, something this unbelievable must be genjutsu.

Her breath caught as he kissed her. His tongue swept past her lips to coax and tease, setting a blaze that burned through her mind, numbing it to all else. His warm hand traced a trail of fire, sliding down her leg to her knee, bending it and slowly drawing it up. Sakura was sure that any second now her heart would burst.

"You fascinate me, Sakura."

Her eyes opened in surprise, and she was immediately lost in lucid red pools.

'Game over,' she thought fleetingly, feeling her consciousness slipping away, '_I lost_.'

A branch broke with a purposefully loud _crack_ and the spiky-haired shadow of her former teammate strode into the moonlit clearing. His red eyes glared at them both.

"Itachi!"

Sakura snapped back the instant before she was brought fully under Itachi's Sharingan. In a daze, she stared at the odd look of irritation on her captor's face.

"Did it look like I needed your help, little brother? Rest assured, I can handle her by myself. I won't be sharing my _toy_ with you."

"T-toy!" Sakura sputtered.

"Sakura, if you don't want to die, then leave," Sasuke ordered.

"You say that like I _chose_ to be here!" Sakura hissed furiously from beneath Sasuke's brother.

Itachi shook his head at her. "Cute, Sakura-chan, but I'm afraid I'll have to postpone our little _reunion_."

"Till _never_ sounds good to me," she said, once again angrily struggling unsuccessfully to get out from under him. Sasuke could see the line that lay open in the towel, exposing her from her chest down her side, to her long, lovely leg, where his brother's hand was wrapped around her thigh.

Ignoring her opinion, Itachi bent to crush her swollen lips with his and she yelped as his body suddenly exploded into a murder of crows and disappeared.

Black feathers rained down while Sakura cautiously sat up, shaking off the after affects of Itachi's attempted genjutsu and rubbing her sore wrists to get the circulation back through her chakra system. Her chakra glowed green while she unblocked her chakra points. Sasuke glared at her as she sat in the moonlight, hair mussed, eyes bright, cheeks flushed—looking completely ravished—in only a towel.

A towel that, at the moment, was not covering _nearly_ enough of her.

"What the fuck were you doing with _him_, Sakura?" Sasuke stood over her menacingly, his hand on his sword's pommel, fingers clenching and unclenching.

Karin waited in the shadows, aghast at the protective note in Sasuke's voice when he spoke to that woman. He had never so much as put one ounce of emotion in _anything_ he'd said to her.

_She was_ _livid_.

"You think that I _wanted_ to do that?" Grasping the towel to herself, Sakura got up and shoved her ex-teammate away. "You _asshole_!"

"Don't talk like that to _my_ Sasuke-kun!" Karin jumped between Sasuke and Sakura, shoving the pink-haired slut back.

Sasuke pushed Karin out of his way and took another threatening step toward Sakura.

Sakura glared at the redhead. "God damn it. I don't need this," she growled.

'I've got to get that sword back!' she thought, looking around the clearing, trying to get her bearings from Itachi's confusing displacement jutsu.

"If you don't tell me what you were doing with him, I'll kill you _right now_," Sasuke threatened, roughly taking a hold of her arm.

Karin got an idea. If Sasuke became angry enough at this slut cavorting with Itachi then he would kill her and then _she_ could comfort him.

"Just kill her, Sasuke-kun!" Karin urged from behind him. "I saw them. They were having _sex_! She's obviously Itachi's lover!"

Sakura's face blazed red. "That's not true! I was not…_doing_ _that_ with him!" Sakura hissed, stomping her bare foot.

"Shut up, Karin," Sasuke cut the redhead short when her mouth opened again. "Just figure out where Itachi went."

He let go of Sakura's arm and watched her adjust the loose towel around herself securely as she attempted to compose herself. Her hands were trembling—the only outward sign that she was shaken up by what happened.

It seemed likely that Itachi was just using her to taunt him because he knew that Sakura used to be on his genin team. The thought that she would even _look_ at his brother bothered the hell out of him, much less be doing what Itachi and now Karin wanted him to believe they were doing. The fact that Sakura wasn't defending Itachi and that his brother had left her alone with him told him the truth.

"Sasuke-kun, I can't sense him. His chakra is completely blocked and he's too far away." Karin lied boldly while she glared at Sakura.

'How _dare_ that pink bitch touch or curse at _my_ Sasuke-kun? Why in the world would he be jealous over _that_ girl?' The way Sasuke was looking at her made Karin want to scratch her eyes out. She _deserved_ to die! Karin pouted at Sasuke. "Can't we just kill her and go…_please_?"

Sakura chuckled ironically. "_She's_ helping you find Itachi?" She snorted in derision. "_She_ can't seem to find him and_ I_ can't seem to get away from the bastard."

"Lying _bitch_!"

Sakura stopped laughing. "She couldn't find her own ass with two hands and a _map_."

Karin gasped indignantly while a third ninja started laughing in the bushes. Sakura took a defensive stance as Suigetsu, and then Juugo walked out to join them. Suigetsu grinned at the interesting view. Sasuke stood between an irate Karin and a nearly-naked, pretty girl—the Akatsuki they'd been chasing were nowhere in sight.

"Did you find Itachi?"

"He's gone," Sasuke informed him.

"No, he's _not_."

Sasuke looked at Sakura suspiciously, fingering his sword pommel.

"You're lying! She's trying to trick you, Sasuke-kun. _Kill_ her," Karin cried. She couldn't backpedal now and tell Sasuke she had fibbed to get him to kill that man-stealing wench!

"Go ahead. _Kill me, Sasuke-kun_," Sakura mimicked her, lifting one chakra-lined fist. "Go ahead and _try_."

"How can you find them when _she_ can't?" His thumb pointed back over his shoulder. Sakura relaxed her fighting stance.

"Before I left Konoha, I put a charm on Samehada in case I was intercepted on the way to deliver it."

"_You_ had the Sharkskin!" Suigetsu moaned loudly slapping his hands over his face and bending as if she'd slugged him in the stomach. "Ten minutes sooner and it would have been mine—along with the girl." He peeked through his fingers and grinned at her.

"Fat chance, you twit!" she scolded the white-haired boy. "And I wouldn't have given you the sword _either_!" She scowled. "_Tch,"_ she scoffed. "I can't stand here and argue. I've got to get that sword back." She began the hand signs for a transportation jutsu.

Sasuke grabbed her hand, stopping her. "I'm going with you," he insisted.

"Me, too!" Suigetsu added.

"No!" both she and Karin cried out at the same time.

"Sakura," he warned, ignoring the other woman simpering at his shoulder.

Sakura sighed heavily. She was wasting time here arguing with Sasuke, that weird fan-girl and the pervert with the creepy smile _and_ she didn't even have proper clothing to chase after the Akatsuki with her sword. Her eyes glided over her former teammate's determined face, wishing that this reunion had happened in a completely different manner.

"Fine. Then give me your shirt."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at her.

"No way!" Karin shrieked. "You can't have _anything_ of his."

"I need something to wear that I can run in." she told Sasuke honestly, trying to ignore the woman screeching at her. She didn't understand how Sasuke put up with that meddlesome harpy.

"Take Suigetsu's shirt!" Karin yelled.

"She can't take mine. It's made of water, remember?"

"Then Juugo's!"

"She could fit her whole body into the sleeve." Suigetsu snickered. "Why not give her _your_ shirt, Karin? It's not like you've got anything _worth_ covering up."

Karin screamed at him in a fit of rage until Sasuke's dark look made her shut up.

"Your shirt wouldn't fit her anyway, cause she's got—" Suigetsu cupped his hands in front of his chest in the shape of boobs and laughed hysterically until Karin started to strangle him. When her hands pushed straight through the water nin she got a face full of water and squealed and sputtered while he laughed all the more.

"Hn," Sasuke growled at his team's antics before turning back to Sakura, who looked like she was ready to chase after the Akatsuki in nothing but that damn towel. During the argument between Karin and Suigetsu, she'd already slipped half a dozen steps away from him.

"Fine," Sasuke growled, stripping off his shirt as he caught up to her in three long strides, cutting off her escape route. "Just hurry up."

He stood facing Sakura holding it out, using his body to block the others while she slipped her arms into the long sleeved garment. She dropped her towel and tied the gi's inside strings tightly. It was too big. She still had room to wrap the shirt almost twice around her slim body and the sleeves hung down over her hands.

"Come here," Sasuke ordered menacingly as he untwisted the rope from his waist.

"No!" Her eyes went wide and she stumbled back. Were _both_ Uchiha brothers' depraved perverts, she wondered. He caught her arm.

"Why were you with him?" He tugged her close enough so he could grab her waist, pulling her within arm's reach.

"I wasn't," she insisted.

"You're playing a dangerous game, Sakura." He said, slowly reaching behind her, wrapping the rope around her thrice while she turned her face up his and looked untrustingly into his infinitely dark eyes.

"It's no game, Sasuke-kun." Sakura swallowed her uneasiness at being so close to the man who'd left her alone so long ago. The air between them felt so charged, it would not have shocked her to see actual sparks igniting when they touched. In her mind she could hear her owns words echoing between them—when she swore her undying love to him forever. High color blazed on her cheeks.

"Sasuke-kun." She licked her lips. "If I tell you where he is, I—I want you to help me, too. I'm taking the sword back."

He didn't give her an answer. Sasuke watched her closely while he tied the belt tight. Her eyes were wide open and vigilant, the same vivid green as the last time he'd been this close to her. His eyes darted to her lips, where her tongue flicked out, wetting them and making them shine alluringly. His gaze was drawn further down to where the moonlight played on the jut of her smooth collarbone and her uncovered cleavage. The length of his shirt fell to the mid-thigh on her, but because there were no buttons, the front dipped far too low, inadvertently exposing a generous amount of her attributes. Without thinking his hand reached over, grasping the material to tug it closed. She gasped and slapped his hand away. She stepped back, fixing it herself.

Suigetsu wolf whistled when she stepped out from behind Sasuke.

"Sasuke, I'll admit you're a handsome man, but your shirt never looked _this_ good on you. Hey, pretty lady, when you're done dating Sasuke's evil brother, you can look me up." He leered lustily at her.

Sakura almost lost her temper at his teasing. "I'm not doing anything with Ita—" She put her hand up, stopping herself from arguing with a stranger about ridiculous things. "Forget it. Thanks for the shirt, Sasuke-kun. I have to hurry. If they get too far away, I'll lose the power to sense the charm." She made ready to run, fully expecting Sasuke to follow her to his brother, whether he helped her or not.

"I'll take you." His sclera turned inky as black flames began to lick up the side of Sasuke's body and across his face until two great, hand-like wings sprouted from his back.

"What the hell?" Sakura took several quick steps back in fear until her back connected solidly with a tree trunk, knocking the air from her lungs. Her arms spread to keep her balance when her knees grew weak at the sight of the creature in front of her. She searched frantically for the best escape route. She'd never seen the second level of Sasuke's Cursed Seal form and it scared the hell out of her. It put her in mind of when she'd first seen Naruto turn into the kyuubi demon against Orochimaru—when he'd attacked her.

"Come here, Sakura," he said, stalking toward her forebodingly.

Her eyes opened impossibly wide as she stared at him. "No, ah, that's ok." She found her legs again and began to move swiftly away. "I think I'll wal—" Sasuke pounced and swept her up in his arms, at the same time lifting off into the air.

"Which way?"

Stunned, she simply pointed one shaking finger and tried not to think about being held to her crush's naked chest so tightly or the huge, horrible wings he now sported. A sickening chill ran through her at the feel of his clawed hands stretched around her waist and curled around her thigh.

'What did Orochimaru's experimenting _do_ to him?' she worried uneasily. The thought left her brain when Sakura was pushed up further against his chest as his strange wings gave a great heave and they surged forward. She placed her hands on his chest between them to push herself back upright.

She looked down and the trees below grew smaller and smaller as they climbed impossibly high into the sky.

"Oh my god!" Her stomach dropped and she closed her eyes tight. 'What if he drops me?' Instead of pushing away from him, her arms unconsciously snaked up around his neck and held on so tight that even if he let her go, she wouldn't fall.

She felt uneasy as they flew across the sky. But unlike the fear of being hunted by Itachi, in Sasuke's arms, even though he looked like a fearsome monster, she slowly realized that she still felt protected. He wasn't trying to grope her, she thought as she hugged him close. Sasuke held her firmly just like he used to when they were genin. And just like old times, her heart still raced at his nearness. No matter how he looked, in her heart he was still Sasuke-kun.

'He did not just chuckle,' she insisted to herself while her face turned bright red. 'He _coughed_.'

Secretly, Sasuke was amused by Sakura's startled reaction when he left the earth and lifted her into the air. As he flew higher, he became aware of the girl-turned-woman he held in his arms and how much she had both changed and remained the same from when they were younger. Her hot breath tickled the side of his neck and her soft lips rested against his skin as she hid her face and clung to him—not because she was some rabid fan-girl, but because she was frightened that she might fall from a great height. He glanced down and saw only inches from his face, the milk-white curves of her pale breasts peeking from beneath his shirt. And directly in front of his face, the dark red kiss mark that was already beginning to bruise her fair skin.

'Damn Itachi. He did that on purpose. He's playing games with me, trying to use Sakura as bait.' He wondered how Sakura got involved in all this. And what was she doing out on a mission alone with one of the Swords of the Seven? That was far different from the girl he knew—the girl who always needed his protection when they were children.

'She never liked heights,' he remembered now as she cringed against him when they hit a particularly strong updraft.

Her silken hair brushed against his cheek. She was still small, almost childlike, save for how her slim frame had filled out into soft, eye-pleasing curves. She smelled like warm spice and honey. It reminded him of a distant memory—something from his childhood that he couldn't quite put his finger on.

"Look out here. I won't drop you, Sakura." He squeezed her waist a little and nudged her head up with his chin. "I need you to show me where he is."

Sasuke's deep voice startled her. She cautiously opened her eyes to see where they were.

It was odd—being so high in the sky, besides the rush of air in her ears, there was very little sound. The silence of the flight, plus being so far from the ground, not to mention the fact that it was Sasuke holding her, conspired to make her very nervous. And when she was nervous, she fell back into old habits—like talking too much.

"Sasuke-kun…What you saw back there…you didn't see, um, er…he didn't—I wasn't," she took an exasperated breath, "I did _not_ invite Itachi on my mission. He, uh, ambushed me in the hot spring. It had to be some kind of prank, I think, to get the sword from me. I've never— ah." She paled. "He's not my lov—er, boyfr—uhg! He's not my _anything_."

He grunted in irritation. "How does he know you?"

"Team Seven fought his clone in Suna when the Akatsuki snatched the One-Tail." She looked into his eyes for a moment, hoping to find some flicker of curiosity at the mention of his old team, but then she turned away. "And then…a few weeks ago, I ran into him and Hoshigaki while I was coming back from a solo mission through Grass and…" Her skin flushed to match her hair. "And…I, he, ah, it's complicated." She couldn't meet his dark gaze. "He claims I have something he wants."

"What?" Sasuke's voice became dangerous and his fingers clutched her hard enough to bruise her thigh—later she would find the dark imprint of his hand.

Her blush deepened and Sasuke felt her shiver against him. "I…I'm not sure, Sasuke-kun," she said softly. "But that doesn't really matter right now. I've _got_ to get that sword back. I'm supposed to deliver it to the Mizukage tomorrow morning"

"How are you going to do that?"

"I have a plan." She said, her face set with fresh confidence. "But I can't take them both on. I can't fight against the Sharingan; just keep Itachi busy if he tries to stop me. You can leave Fishface to me."

They flew on in silence for another few minutes, Sakura guiding him as she felt the pull of the charm become stronger. She became bolder with the belief that she was secure in his strong, sure embrace, turning and viewing the grandiose scenery both above and below them. The stars shone overhead unimpeded by clouds. It seemed she could almost reach out and touch them. Wonder shone in her eyes as he watched her, the moonlight reflected on her straight, pale hair.

She could smell the sharp tang of saltwater on the air. They were high enough now to see the ocean beyond the forest and it was beautiful—glittering, nearly black with the moon shining down on the unending expanse of white-capped waves. They were getting close now, she knew, but she almost regretted it—it had been years since she felt this—Sasuke's protective embrace. Before they had to come back down from their unanticipated flight her curiosity about him got the best of her.

"Sasuke-kun?" she whispered.

"Hn?" His chest rumbled against her where their bodies touched.

"Will you come home…after?"

He sighed. Knowing her, he wondered when she might ask this question, but he just didn't know. He shrugged and her heart fell.

"You can, you know…come home." Her glimmering green eyes dropped to her lap. "We miss you. Your friends—Team Seven." Her hands pressed down warmly on his cold shoulders for a brief instant. "I…I miss you, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke didn't have an answer for her. There were just too many variables right now. Suddenly, he felt the second stage of the curse mark receding and found he had to refocus and redouble his effort to maintain his transformation. 'That's odd,' he thought, recalling the only other time it receded without his control—during the Chunin exams when Sakura hugged him, begging him not to kill Kinuta Dosu. Maybe Itachi had some knowledge of that and was using Sakura to throw him off.

'It won't work, aniki. I'm going to kill you no matter what you do.' Today would be the day when he would end Itachi's hold over him.

"We're nearly there," he told her.

"Oh." She became conscious of the world around her once more and looked around, trying to shake off her unexpected inattentiveness. She put aside her worry for Sasuke—it wouldn't help either of them. She also had an important mission to finish.

"Let's meet them on the ground," she suggested and had to quell the urge to cry out when Sasuke took a sudden dip toward the trees. She held her breath and clung to him tightly as vertigo hit her. Just above the treetops, he pulled up and landed lightly on a thick tree limb. He set her down gently and kept hold of her arm to steady her for a second until her she could stand on her own.

"What's your plan?" he asked as his curse seal reversed and he returned to normal while she straightened her shirt.

"Let me go in first, Sasuke."

His eyebrow rose at her boldness.

"I'll attack Hoshigaki and activate the charm. If Itachi interferes again, you can step in or else, please, just wait until I've secured Samehada. Once I have the sword, maybe you can create a diversion. I am going to retreat fast. I'm sure that Hoshigaki will pursue me. I'm sorry that I can't stick around to help you with Itachi."

Of course, she knew he wouldn't appreciate her interference when it came to his revenge, but she wished she could stay to help heal him after their fight. She had faith that he was strong enough to take on his brother. At least Hoshigaki wouldn't stick around to help Itachi—he would be after her once she stole the sword back. "I was hoping that you could distract them for a few minutes after I succeed—just long enough for me to get a head start on Kisame."

He scoffed at her suggestion. "You think it will be so easy? These men are _assassins_, Sakura."

She smiled brilliantly at him and he was reminded of his days on Team Seven and the dobe's infinitely upbeat attitude. "Believe it, Sasuke-kun," she said warmly then reached out and softly touched his forearm. "I won't die. Have a little faith in me."

He stared at her for a moment and then acquiesced, taking two kunai from his pouch and holding them out to her.

She looked at the knives and then looked into his eyes a final time, not trying to hide the unshed tears in hers. She took a calming breath to solidify her courage. She wasn't afraid to let him see her feelings. She knew they didn't make her weak. She moved forward suddenly and hugged him close, burying her face in his neck while he stood frozen—warmth bloomed in his chest.

"Please come home soon, Sasuke-kun," she said softly and her lips brushed his cheek. Sakura slid her hands down his arms as she backed off, taking the kunai he offered before she turned away.

She darted out into the woods and his Sharingan activated as he watched her graceful movements, jumping from limb to limb before she hit the ground running. For the first time in a long time, he wondered what he'd missed by not being there to watch her progression. Regret? No, but…he felt something as he watched the Uchiha symbol on her back growing smaller the further she drew away from him. Then he remembered what she was running toward, shook off his memories and followed—he had his own mission—one far more important.

He was surprised at her courage—or stupidity, depending on how you looked at it. She was walking into a deathtrap. The Akatsuki were all ruthless murderers. He shook his head in chagrin. "Just like old times, eh?" he muttered. "Sakura getting into trouble and me having to step in and save her."

0o0o0

0o0o0

Kisame growled again at his sword. He was glad to have it back, but it was acting strange—like a lovesick puppy.

"Look here, Sammy, I don't care how sweet her chakra tastes. You're _my_ sword."

The sword made a petitioning whine and Kisame sighed in consternation. "No, she _can't_ come with us. She's the _enemy_."

Beside him the dark-haired nin chuckled as they maneuvered though the trees.

"You know, I wouldn't have this problem had you just lied in the first place."

"Lied?" Itachi's eyebrow rose.

"In the bar," Kisame reminded him. "You could have just told the girl that I won. I would have done that for you."

"Kisame-san, you were the one who made the outlandish challenge—and lost."

"You _like_ her!" Kisame pointed accusingly at the smirking Uchiha keeping pace beside him. "You _let_ her win because you wanted to keep her for yourself."

Itachi shook his head. "She won fair and square."

"You were snuggling up to her when I woke up. What did she promise you?"

"Nothing. You shouldn't make bets that you can't cover."

"Damn right, _thief_," a soft voice accused dangerously from behind them.

"Hello, Pinky." He leered at her new sexiness, manifested in Sasuke's gi. "New dress?" His eyebrows wiggled at her. "Me likey."

"Very funny, Fishface." Sakura put her hands on her hips, looking both confident and appealing. She refused to even glance at the man to Kisame's right. "Give Samehada back to me _now_."

The sword over Kisame's shoulder wriggled and writhed in agreement.

"Sorry, Cherry-chan. I'd like to play with you, but Samehada and I got some work to do."

Sakura pointed a kunai at him. "Let's go, Fishface."

"You and two little knives, against me and Sammy?" He lifted the bandaged sword toward her. "Don't make me laugh, little girl."

"Put the sword down, you asshole. I'll take you on with two knives or even bare-fisted—_if _you're not _scared_."

The sword on his shoulder whined and slumped and Kisame growled at it, "Fine. If I win, you will quit whining about her. Deal?"

The sword waggled and grunted in agreement and he set it down on a large rock behind them. Itachi moved to the side to give them room while he watched with great interest as the kunoichi challenged his partner. He smirked when he saw his clan symbol on her back.

"You've ruined my sword, girl. I'm gonna kill you for that," Kisame snarled at her when she took a fighting stance in front of him. Even though her stature was small, she was striking with her hair blowing in the ocean's breeze and her bright, green eyes glaring defiantly. He realized she looked very tempting in the clothing she'd acquired after her run in with Itachi.

"You know, Pinky," Kisame snickered wickedly. "I've changed my mind. If I win, I'm taking you with me. Itachi was wrong. I should have never let you walk out of that bar in Grass with my sword, bet or no bet. A sassy, little smart-mouth like you _needs_ a real man to keep you in your place. Your place is in a nice, soft bed—and I'm _just_ the man for the job."

"_When_ I kill you, I'll make it quick and _painful_," she promised with a sneer. Her fingers slipped through the hand signs for a jutsu.

"_Hana Tatsumaki no Jutsu_"

The air filled with a shower of flower petals all around them.

"Flowers?" Kisame guffawed. "Little girl you don't know who you're messing with—"

Suddenly the seemingly innocuous flower petals swirled into a twister all around them—the edge of each blade became razor sharp, slicing the Water nin over every part of his body until he was forced to shield himself to avoid bleeding to death.

"_That's it_, woman! No more Mr. Nice Guy. _Suiton: Bakusui Shōha!"_

A giant ball of water began to expand between them, but she'd studied the technique—Neji detailed his team's battle with the Mist ninja. Sakura acted quickly to contain it before Kisame could control the entire battlefield.

"_Kaze_ _Senpuu no jutsu!"_ Kisame's wall of water twirled into a whirlpool when Sakura hit the heel of her foot on the ground, cracking open a deep fissure so the water quickly drained away, leaving behind only a few puddles.

Before he could say another word, she threw both of Sasuke's kunai at him, following behind them, ready to punch with her chakra-loaded fists.

"_Shannaro!"_

The huge, blue ninja met her fist with his own, both ninja striking each other. Normally, Kisame's punch would be enough to put an ordinary man down, but Sakura's concentrated chakra exploded against his jaw, blasting him away into the forest behind the battlefield.

Sakura wiped the blood from her lip as she watched the place her opponent had disappeared into. She heard a clapping sound coming from the right and behind her. 'Itachi,' she thought. A quick search with her senses told her that Sasuke was on surveillance at her back and Itachi was still watching the fight from the sidelines, but she didn't know how much longer he would stay there. She didn't even need to look over to feel his eyes on her—and she knew he was smiling. She shivered.

"So you can do more than just drink, eh, kid? Kisame pulled himself out of the wreckage of broken trees and cracked his knuckles. "This is going to be fun."

Kisame descended on her. The jutsu fight was over, now that he knew she wasn't weak, he wanted hand-to-hand combat against the girl.

"Too bad you threw away your knives, Cherry-chan." He pulled out a kunai. "Stopping this is gonna hurt."

Sakura blocked his first swing with the long sleeve of her gi. She grasped his arm, twisted it around and flung her other arm around his back. With her chakra scalpels out, she stabbed him in the side and yanked the blade up.

"So you do have a weapon. You keep surprising me, Cherry-chan." He rounded on her but her fists were empty. He felt his side but there was no knife there. he growled.

"_Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu!"_

A water clone appeared at his side and now Sakura was on the defensive. Ducking, rolling, bending and twisting to avoid two sets of fists. She finally managed to stab the water clone in the neck, dispersing him. She flipped over backwards to give herself some space and drew out her chakra scalpels—this time so he could see them. She jerked to a stop when something grabbed her leg.

A hand reaching out of one of the puddles left from his last jutsu. She turned back to face Kisame while sending chakra to her foot to stomp the one holding her leg.

Too late! The knife was already coming in an underhand arch toward her stomach. She grabbed it, slowing it down but he bulled through, sending the blade in just below her ribs.

0o0o0

As Sasuke watched Sakura fight, a deep sense of satisfaction took hold. Not only was Sakura holding her own, she seemed to have the upper hand. Then in the space of a breath the tables turned. Sasuke only just glanced at Itachi when his brother's smile turned to a scowl. He looked back at Sakura.

"Too bad, Pinky. I was looking forward to teaching you some real tricks." Kisame twisted the knife to scramble her guts and Sakura collapsed to her knees. He let go and stepped back to watch her die.

Sasuke stopped breathing or even thinking. Over the edge of the horizon the first rays of the sun glowed, heralding the beginning of a new day as he watched the red flower of blood bloom through the back of Sakura's shirt just below the symbol of his clan. For one moment his world froze and he heard the echo of a childish scream of a boy who'd found his entire family dead—and then, slowly, she began to fall backwards. He flash-stepped beside her and caught her body before she hit the ground.

"Sasuke-kun." Her voice sounded small and pained. She coughed and warm blood sprayed from her mouth, hitting his bare neck and chest, running down his skin.

"_This_ was your plan?" Sasuke frowned at her, pushing her hair back from her forehead while holding her shivering body close.

She smiled softly. Even if he pretended he didn't care about anything or anyone, Sasuke still came to her in the end. It gave her hope for his future. She brushed his cheek lovingly with the back of her hand.

"You don't have to protect me, Sasuke-kun. I've grown stronger, too. Just believe in me…and come home safe."

Sasuke heard a muted curse and looked up to see Hoshigaki glaring across the far side of the narrow ridge. Standing there above them, daringly holding Samehada against her shoulder was Sakura, unharmed. Sasuke looked down at the girl in his arms. She smile mischievously and disappeared, leaving him holding a handful of delicate pink petals.

Her voice came faintly to them from across chasm.

"Thanks for the distraction, Sasuke-kun!" Then she hauled back and slammed her fist into the ground. The ridge exploded into a huge cloud of debris and dust that rained down on them and clouded their view.

'I suppose if she can give a performance like that then I should do better,' he thought, pulling Kusanagi from its sheath.

Sasuke smirked in admiration of her audaciousness and went to work while she made her escape.

0o0o0

0o0o0

0o0o0

_Attention!_ Remember way back, some time ago, when I said I would try to put up story previews for upcoming chapters? Well, I've started it!

The previews will vary and I'm posting them on my you-tube site.

If you go find it and subscribe, you'll be notified when a new posting comes up. Next week's preview will be either Cat-O-Nine Tails or Finders Keepers. If my link isn't right, my you-tube user name is kaze1y1kiba.

Here's where you need to go: youtube dot com / user / kaze1y1kiba / videos

Please review for this super-long chapter. This story is so twisted. What do _you_ think might happen next?

Thanks,

K&K

Things you probably already know:

FYI; A few of these are made-up jutsu.

_Hana Tatsumaki no Jutsu-Petal tornado jutsu. _

_Kaze Senpoo no Jutsu-Whirlwind jutsu. _

_Suiton: Bakusui Shōha-Water Release: Exploding Water Shock Wave_

_Mizu_ _Senpuu no Jutsu-Water Whirlwind_

Thank you, Sakura's Unicorn for helping me edit and amp up the heat on this crazy story.

Please do not alert or favorite without a review.


End file.
